Austal has delivered a 103-metre high-speed expeditionary fast transport ship to the US Navy during a ceremony aboard the ship at the shipyard in Mobile, Alabama.
Constructed by Austal USA, SNS Puerto Rico (EPF 11) was the first EPF to perform and successfully complete a “clean sweep” of integrated sea trials, combining builder’s trials and acceptance trials into one at-sea event in the Gulf of Mexico.
Austal Chief Executive David Singleton said the EPF ‘continues to impress stakeholders’ with its flexible platform that is delivering multi-mission capability to the US Navy’s global operations.
“Puerto Rico joins the growing fleet of EPFs constructed by Austal USA and proudly serving with the U.S. Navy in locations as diverse as the USA, Middle East and South East Asia,” he said.
“The EPF continues to impress the U.S. Navy and indeed many other navies around the world with the genuine flexibility and operability of the platform.”
Austal is currently constructing two additional Spearhead-class EPFs at is USA shipyard. According to the company, Newport (EPF 12) is in the final stages of assembly, while construction recently began on the future USNS Apalachicola (EPF 13).
